While there's plenty of modern hustle and bustle in Tokyo, one of my favorite places I visited was the Ueno district, which is home to the famous Ueno Koen. This park is one of the largest and most popular in Japan, with thousands of visitors showing up every year for the springtime tradition of hanami, or cherry blossom viewing.

If there's one thing that I knew I had to do while in Japan, it was visit a real onsen, or hot spring. Luckily for me, there were actually quite a few in the region of Akita where I was staying, and the particular one that I visited was apparently one of the best. For a first impression, I'll definitely say that it'll be very hard to beat, and it was one of the most relaxing and revitalizing experiences I had in Japan.

Gatchaman Crowds is the latest installment/spin-off of the famed Gatchaman franchise, first started by Tatsunoko in 1972. It's a fresh, modern take on the series with a slick new look and an interesting design.

Silver Spoon has easily been my favorite series this season, from the fantastic art to the characters that really grow on you, and I've been digging it above all the others. Main character Hachiken has been developing and catching on to farm life pretty well, and his friends make for a colorful group of characters. Mikage, the girl he has a crush on, meshes well with him, and their personalities really balance each other.

Gifuu Doudou has started to impress me now, finally picking up after a somewhat slow start. With the first two episodes consisting mostly of exposition about the first meeting of Naoe Kanetsugu and Maeda Keiji, it has started to actually go into their adventures and some of their fights.

This one had me pretty interested just because of the premise itself, and I'm pretty intrigued by it. It's about a boy who goes to an agricultural boarding school in rural Japan, something that you really don't see too often. Along the way he makes new friends and has to prove that he really can be cut out for the hard work of country life, with plenty of laughs along the way.

Gifuu Doudou is an anime based off of a manga created by Tetsuo Hara, famous for Fist of the North Star, and I could tell when I first saw the character designs. It's a pretty interesting little show, and I'll have to see how it develops. It's about two Sengoku Era heroes, Maeda Keiji and Naoe Kanetsugu, who were best friends, and it probably is going to cover their history and exploits. I was interested in the idea of this, so here's my first impression!

When most people think of Japan, they think of either the advanced super-metropolis of Tokyo, or the historical sites in areas like Nara and Kyoto. However, there's far more than meets the eye; anyone who's been there can tell you Japan is a pretty interesting place. There are a lot of places where old and new kind of blend and you can see a different way of life depending on where you go.

Sakura-Con 2012 was by far one of the best cons I've been to in a long time, largely due to all the awesome friends I got to see and a total lack of drama. Furthermore, it was one of the con’s biggest years for guests. This year there were three major musical performances and a whole bunch of industry people. Voice actors, directors, and producers came in droves, and for good reason: this was Sakura-Con's fifteenth year, and the staff gave it their all to make it their best.

When visiting Japan for the second time in March 2010, I was reminded of the interesting duality of culture there. Many of us see Japan and think of technology, high fashion, and modern pop culture. J-pop idols, maid cafés, anime, and manga are all prevalent, of course, but it's really interesting to see just how seamlessly Japan's old culture is integrated into the vast urban sprawl of Tokyo.

Akihabara, the Electric Town. This is the crown jewel for anime, manga, game, and tech fans in Tokyo. Located only a scant 5-10 minutes from Asakusa, the famous temple district in Tokyo, this place has absolutely anything you could ever want, and there’s so much to see it took two trips to see everything I wanted to (or at least had time to). Akihabara has an interesting little history.

Well, once again Kumoricon has come and gone, and once again the staff impressed. It was in Vancouver, WA this year, right across the river from Portland. For the first time, it filled two hotels, and it seems like the staff are really pulling it together and optimizing everything to make sure all attendees have the best time possible. I'm very pleased with the results.

Sakura Con 2011 was quite the experience. It takes place in Seattle, WA, and is the largest anime con in the Northwest. With a massive crowd in the tens of thousands, it pulls out all the stops, almost being overwhelming at times. However, that leaves you with plenty to do and plan for, and it is definitely worth it.

Kumoricon is a convention like any other, but it holds a special place in my heart. Set right in the heart of downtown Portland, it's the biggest anime con in Oregon and one of the largest in the Northwest, second only to the well-known Sakuracon in Seattle. Kumoricon is special to me because it's everything I love right in the city of my birth, so it feels like home.